$120 billion transportation package gets mixed reaction

Advocates of public transit expressed mixed opinions about Congress's approval of a two-year bill containing $120 billion for transportation. The advocacy group Reconnecting America called the legislation a missed opportunity, but was pleased at the legislation's support for planning for transit-oriented development around new stations. The New York Times said "Republicans boasted of streamlining environmental review processes for transportation programs and shifting resources away from highway beautification and pedestrian and bike paths." Deron Lovaas at the Natural Resources Defense Council accused Congress of neglecting environmentally friendly forms of transportation. New Urbanist Michael Lewyn, contrasting this year's legislation to the last time Congress swung sharply to the right (after the 1994 elections), said the federal measure may not have been a victory, but it is "at least a bullet dodged."

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